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Political Science

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Theses/Dissertations

Democracy

Publication Year

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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Unpacking The Impact Of Democracy On Terrorism, Issares Lertangtam Jan 2014

Unpacking The Impact Of Democracy On Terrorism, Issares Lertangtam

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

While policy makers assert that democracy can reduce terrorism, academics have produced differing theories explaining the relationship between the two. One theory suggests that democracy discourages terrorism because citizens in democracy can express grievances through electoral process resulting in their less incentive to resort to violence. Another theory argues that democracy encourages terrorism because its enabling environment reduces the cost of terrorist activities. Still another contends that democracy increases terrorism because political contestation in democracy induces some groups to use violence to outbid for their cause. Other strands exist including one suggesting no relationship between democracy and terrorism. These controversial …


Breaking The Iron Law : Robert Michels, The Rise Of The Mass Party, And The Debate Over Democracy And Oligarchy, Peter Albert Lavenia, Jr. Jan 2011

Breaking The Iron Law : Robert Michels, The Rise Of The Mass Party, And The Debate Over Democracy And Oligarchy, Peter Albert Lavenia, Jr.

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

This is a reexamination of Robert Michels' work Political Parties: A Sociological Study Of The Oligarchical Tendencies of Modern Democracy and its place in the debate over the rise and role of the mass political party in democracy and democratic thought. It examines Michels' involvement with the German Social Democratic Party and the syndicalist faction around Georges Sorel's Le Mouvement Socialist, as well as his friendship with Max Weber, and his experiences with socialist electoral politics that led him to write Political Parties and explore the nature of political parties and the tension between democracy and oligarchy within them. Time …


Party System Stability In Latin America : A Comparative Study, Luis F. Clemente Jan 2009

Party System Stability In Latin America : A Comparative Study, Luis F. Clemente

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

It has been argued that party systems should always be on "working order" because stable party systems correlate with stable democracies, and whenever party systems become dysfunctional, democracy becomes dysfunctional as well. In Latin America, there is legitimate concern for party system stability precisely because of such outcome. Political parties in the region not only face internal and external challenges, but also the added pressure of being part of democratic consolidation. Most importantly, Latin American politics currently present a great challenge: how to restore citizen trust in political parties and party systems.


Parliamentary Independence In Uganda And Kenya 1962--2008, John Kendall Johnson Jr Jan 2009

Parliamentary Independence In Uganda And Kenya 1962--2008, John Kendall Johnson Jr

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

This comparative case study examines the independence of the Uganda and Kenya parliaments from the time of their independence from the U.K. in the early 1960s, until 2008, focusing especially on the past 12 years. Beginning in the mid-late 1990s, these East African legislatures became two of the most independent in Africa, censuring ministers, developing effective committees, amending legislation, and enacting private member bills that significantly enhanced their power relative to that of their executive branches. Following the enactment of these private member bills, the two parliaments gained control over their budgets and staffs, expanded their campuses, and began playing …